Description

Modern Traction Archive: Volume 31 (Bletchley and Wellington, Somerset in 1987 and 1988)

This programme concludes our periodic look at action from the West Coast Mainline at Bletchley, this time from 1987. A whole of locomotive-hauled services are seen passing through the station including, Intercity, parcels, freightliner, speedlink freight and empty stock workings.

In the second part of this programme we travel to the Devon-Somerset border in 1988 to witness passenger and freight train operations between Taunton and Exeter. Cross-country, London Intercity services, parcels, fuel, speedlink, cement, china clay and ballast duties are all seen.

The West of England mainline had a surprisingly wide variety of train types to be seen as well as a good quantity of freight train services and intercity loco-hauled passenger services, which can be seen in this programme. This includes weekday and summer Saturday workings with large-logo, liveried class 50 and blue-liveried class 31s in charge. If you’re into pure nostalgia or modelling the then railway scene, this programme is an ideal accompaniment to any collection.